Fine gold recovering machine



Aug. 15, 1950 L. D. DREW FINE GOLD RECOVERING MACHINE Filed Jan. 2, 19484 Sheets-Shgei; 1

INVENTOR.

100/3 QDREW M /amwra.

ATTD RN EYS Aug. 15, 1950 D. DREW FINE GOLD RECOVERING MACHINE 4ShetS-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 2, 1948 INVENTOR.

ATI'D R N EYE M445 a 3 a LOU/SDD/PEW Aug. 15, 1950 L. o. DREW 2,518,605

FINE cow RECOVERING MACHINE Filed Jan. 2, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 3INVENTOR.

Lou/s DDEEW ATTORNEYS z- 1 0 1.. D. DREW 2,518,605

' FINE GOLD RECOVERING MACHINE Filed Jan. 2, 1948 4 Sheets- Sheet 4 G Ho 7 7O 5 l 57 o 57 IN VEN TOR.

Z 0 0/5 D. DREW ATTDRN EYS Patented Aug. 15, 1950 UN I TED STA'I'ESPATENT 0F FI CE.

FINE GOLD RECOVERING- MACHINE Louis D. Drew, Independence, Calif.

Application January 2, 1948, Serial. No. 20

1 Claim. 1.

This invention relates to a machine of the rotary endless belt typeadapted to separate by concentration such minerals as gold, from anorcmass important object of the invention. is to provide a machine of.the type stated, that is adaptedto convey a mass of ore to anendlessbelt, concentrate in-v pores of the belt, by means of spray jets,the minerals contained. in the:- ore; wash off. the waste portion of theore, and dislodge the concentrated minerals from the belt,

for gravitation to a concentration trough.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a construction,in a machine: of the type stated, wherein adjustments are possiblewithin a: widerange, as; to: the torce and distance of. travel of the:spray jets, selection or beltsof relatively differingweaves orporosity,pitch of the spray jets: relative to: the belt, and. selective use. ofthe. spray jets,

Stilt another important object is to: provide. a. machine of: the type:stated that will be exceptionall'y' durable, of great capacity as tothe: amount of ore that can be handled within a given time,

and of unusual efficiency discharge of its tune tron ot separation. ofprecious minerals from ore.

Yet another important object is to provide a machine at the: characterdescribed that wilt automatically act upon a. mass of ore ta carry it"to: the point at which the concentrating action is to:- take place.separate the minerals from; the. mass, discharge the waste, and depositthe minerals remaining in a trough for ready removal by an operator.v

Other objects of the invention will appear from the: followingdescription and accompanying drawing and: will be pointed out im theannexed clairnathe accompanying drawing there has beendisclosed astructure designed to carry out the various objects of the invention,but it is to be understood that the inventionis not confined to theexact features shown as various changes may be made within the scope ofthe claim which follows.

In the drawings? Figure I is aside elevational' view of a machineconstructed in. accordance with the invention;

Figure 2. is a plan. view, portions of a conveyor and wash tank. beingbroken away Figure. 3 is aside elevational view showing, one 0t two:upper rollers and an. adjusting, means therefor;

Figure 4 is a transverse section through-the other upper roller and a.spray tube associated therewith;

Figure 5, is a side elevational. view of a lower roller and.concentrating troughr a spray tube associated therewith. being shown in.transverse section;

Figure 6 is an end elevation of the lower roller andspray tube,v takenfrom the left of. Figure. 5?;

Figure '7 is an elevation: of. a. roller device for retaining inelevated position. arr edge of. the up.-

per course of the endless belt;

Figure 8 is aside elevational viewof a mounting. for a floating roller;

Figure 9 is a side elevation, portions being broken away, of one. of theupper spray tubes;

Figure 10 1's an end elevation thereof;

Figure 11 is a fragmentary longitudinal section through said tubeshowing one oi a. plurality of. jet units that are mounted thereon; and

Figure 12. is a plan view of. said unitp Referring to the drawing indetail, pedestals 5 are provided which may be of. concrete or the like.These support an. angle iron rectangular supporting frame generallydesignated as 6.

, There. connectionv of the frame to the pedestals is preferablyadjustable, as at 'l" to permit vertical adjustment of the frame asnecessary- Adjacent the frame 6 is a wash tank 8, which contains thematerial to be acted upon by the machine. Abucket-type conveyor 9 hasits lower end;- carried by shaft I 0, positioned within the tank, sothat it can. feed the material continua ously to the machine. The upperend is supported by spaced arms lit rigid with the frame Ii and extendedupwardly from one. end of the frame. The material is deposited by theconveyor on a feed. chute t2 inclined. downwardly toward the center ofthe frame.

The upper shaft I'3 of the conveyor has fixedly connected thereto apulley I4. A V-beltv I15 passes around the pulley, and also: around apulley [E rotated. by a drive shaft. [1a. The drive shaft is journaledin the top of the frame atone end thereof. Drive shaft. ['1 is. poweredfrom. a suit.- able sou-roe, not shown.

A pulley i8 is also mounted on the drive shaft, adjacentpulley Hi, andcarries a V-bel't [9,, that also passes around a pulley 2.0T, carriedand rotating a roller shaft: 2 [1. These drive. connections are bestseen from. Figs. 1 and. 2..

From the above. it is seen that the drive shatt I11 actuates. theconveyonand. also the other roller shaft 2].. The drive shaft itselfconstitutes. a roller shaft at. the other end. of the: frame.

Adjustment. of. the distance between the roller shafts is desirable, andfor this purpose, the bearings 22 in which the roller shaft 2| isjournalled are mounted on the frame slidably. Each of these is threadedat one end to receive an adjusting screw 23, one end of which is formedas a crank, this being journalled in the frame. By rotation of thecranks, the position of the shaft 2| is adjusted as necessary. Thisconstruction is best shown in Fig. 3.

So that the V-belt l9 will remain taut regardless of adjustments somade, I provide a lever 24 (Figure 1) fulcrumed intermediate its ends tothe frame 6, this having at one end an idler wheel 25 that is incontinuous engagement with the belt. A spring 26 is connected to theother end of the lever, and also to a fixed bracket 21 extended upwardlyfrom the frame. Spring 25, tending to compress, presses the idler wheelagainst the belt continuously, so as to take up any slack in the beltthat would otherwise result from adjustment of the relative distancebetween the roller shafts.

Mounted in the top of the frame at one end thereof, for rotation by thedrive or roller shaft I7, is an upper roller 28, that extendssubstantially the width of the frame. Another upper roller 29 issimilarly mounted at the top of the frame, at the other end, thisrotating on the opposed roller shaft 2|. Intermediatethe ends of theframe, and at the bottom thereof, a lower roller 30 is journalled forrotation in suitable bearings carried by the frame. The rollers are allparallel and of the same length, and as best seen from Figure 1, theirmounting as described provides a roller arrangement that defines,substantially, an inverted isosceles triangle, with the lower roller 3!]as the apex.

. Around the rollers passes an endless separator belt 3|, preferably ofcanvas material, and substantially as wide as. the rollers are long. Itis pointed out that other fabrics can as well be used, this depending onthe particular type of metal which is to be concentrated through usethereof. According to the type of metals to be recovered, the materialof the belt will be selected with due regard to its particular porosityor coarseness of weave.

That course of the separator belt 3! extending between the upper rollersis to be depressed during operation of the machine, and to this end, Iprovide a floating roller 32, shorter in length than the width of thebelt 3| or the length of the upper or lower rollers (see Figure 2). Thisis pressed against, and thus depresses, the upper course of the belt, ata point substantially midway between the upper rollers, as best seenfrom Figures 1 and 2. One end of the floating roller, shown at the Tightin Figure 2, isrsubstantially flush with the adjacent edge of theseparator belt, with the result that the other end is spaced wellinwardly from the opposite edge.

Referring now to Figures 2 and 8, the floating roller 32 is supported atits ends by depending hanger brackets 33, preferably L-shaped. These areformed with slots 34, receiving bolts 35. Bolts 35 are tightened to thefree ends of hanger arms 36, curved downwardly adjacent their other endsas shown. Said other ends of the hanger arms are pivoted to the frame 6at 37. Adjacent the pivotally connected ends of the hanger arms, a rod38 is pivotally joined to each hanger arm, and is spring-pressed towardthe hanger arm by a spring 39. Thus, the floating roller 32 iscontinually pressed against the belt 3|, and depresses the upper coursethereof. If the position of the floating roller relative to the upperrollers needs adjustment, bolts 35 are loosened so that the dcpendinghangers 33 can be adjusted longitudinally of the hanger arms 36.

When the separator belt is depressed as described, the edge of the beltat the left in Figure 2 should be kept elevated, so that water sprayedthereagainst (in a manner to be described) will run toward the center ofthe belt and off the right edge. This edge elevation is provided for byextending the fixed bracket 2? angularly so that it overlies the edge ofthe belt, and mounting on the end of the bracket a pair of small rollers4|! (see Figure 7). The edge portion of the separator belt is passedbetween these rollers, and to retain the belt therebetween, the edge canbe formed with a filled loop ll.

The invention embodies means for supplying water for spray purposes.Leading from a pump 42 positioned adjacent the frame 6 are hose lines43, 44, and 45. Conventional manually operated gate valves 46, 41, and48 respectively control the flow through the hose lines. The flowthrough any of the hose lines can be cut off by the valve associatedtherewith, and this may be desirable in certain instances, but normally,all the lines are open, the line 43 discharging through a spraytherefrom be directed through its side wall against the belt. To thisend, the tube may have a longitudinal slot 52 extending substantiallyfrom end to end thereof, through which the water is forced. As the waterissues under pressure through the slot, it strikes a curved baffle plate53' secured along one edge to the spray tube as by brazing or a weld.Thus, the water is deflected against the belt at an angle, striking thebelt near the top of one of the oppositely inclined surfaces defined bydepression of the upper course. The Water thus washes downwardly,against the direction of movement of the belt, and while causing theparticles of metal to be caught and con centrated in the pores of thebelt, washes the.

sand and other waste to the bottom of the depression, in a continuousflushing action. The sand and water move off the belt at the right inFigure 2, dropping to a catch pan 54 positioned below the belt at thebottom of the depression formed therein, and thence through an inclineddischarge trough 55 leading to the sump (not shown). An overflow pipe 56that exends from the wash tank 8, also leads to the sump.

Extending substantially from end to end of the spray tube 50 are spacedjet units. Each of these, as best seen from Figures 9, 11, and 12,includes a hand screw 51 threadably engaged by an opening 58 of thetube. For the purpose of retaining the screw in positions of threadedadjustment, I form the circular head of the screw with peripherallyspaced notches 59, any of which can engage one end of an L-shaped spring60.

by soldering or the like, to the tube. It is thus seen that the spring,engaging in a notch 59, will yieldably hold the screw in any position towhich adjusted The other end of the spring is permanently amxed asCarried by the inner pointed stem valve 6| that extends across the boreof the spray tube. This is adapted to seat in a tapered valve seat 52,communicating with anangular passageway 63 formed in a block 64' weldedor otherwise fixedly secured to thespray tube. Adjustment ofthe stemrelative-to its seat determines the velocity or pressure under which ajet will be forced from the passageway against the surface of theseparator belt. It may be meted, that the passageway is so angled as todirect a jet against the belt laterally relative to the direction ofvmovement of the belt. I have found that particularly where a belt ofrelatively open weave is used, this assists greatly in increasing thedesired concentrating action imposed upon the mineral particles incooperation with the jets issuing from the adjacent spray tube 49. Waterforced from the spray tube 49- washes backward under the spray tube 50against the direction of movement" of the belt, andthe lateral sprayjets issuing from thespraytube 50, striking the agitated mass of sandand water under great pressure, further concentrates in the pores of thebelt any minerals not previously concentrated by the spray jets fromtube 49. Additionally, the spray jets from tube 59 assist' in moving thewho-1e mass of water and sand to the right in Figure 2, as is desirablesince the mass is to move in that direction to proceed to the catch pan54.

Both the spray tubes 49 and 50 are mounted above the belt for separaterotatable adjustment, so to vary the angle of the spray jets relative tothe belt, and also for separate vertical adjustment, so as to vary thedistance of the tubes from the belt. To this end, the ends of the spraytube 59 are closed by caps 65, from which project studs 66 threaded attheir free ends. The studs pass through longitudinal slots formed invertical brackets 61 mounted upon frame 6. The studs also extend throughsmall blocks 63 which are not fixedly attached thereto.

Wing nuts 69 are threadable on the ends of the studs. Thus, if it isdesired to adjust the spray tube rotatably, wing nuts 69 can be loosenedwhereupon the spray tubes can be partially rotated and the wing nutsagain tightened to secure the tube in its new position.

Threadable into the tops of the blocks 68 are cranks l0, journalled inthe tops of the brackets 61. By this means, the elevation of the spraytube can be adjusted.

Either adjustment, it can be noted, is permitted by the hose line 44,because this is of flexible material such as rubber.

As to the spray tube 49, the same mounting is used, the cranks in thisinstance being designated I l, and the slotted brackets 12.

Referring now to the spray tube the same mounting could of course beused, but I have found that in this instance, adjustment as to elevationis not important, and thus I prefer to confine the adjustment to arotatable adjustment to vary the pitch of the spray jets relative to thebelt. These spray jets can in this case be formed as openings in theside wall of the tube, that are directed against the belt surface. Tomount the spray tube, pipe clamps 73 are used at its ends, these beingbolted to the sides of the frame 6. If it is desired to adjust the spraytube, the pipe clamps are loosened, and the tube turned as necessary.

It may now be noted that the jets from two upper spray tubes drive, andthus concentrate, the minerals into the upper surface of the belt end ofthe screw isaaaracoe as it appears in Figure 1, while the jets of thelower tube strike the under surface of the beltas it appears in the samefigure, this being, of course, the same belt surface previously actedupon. As the lower jets strike the. belt in opposition to its. path ofmovement, they dislodge the mineral particles previously concentrated inthe pores of the. belt, and wash them. down into a concentrating troughM mounted below the lower roller 30. This, as best. seen from Figure 6,has spaced vertical partitions in it, defining compartments, to preventundue concentration of the mineral particles at one end or the other.

The mineral particles gravitate tothe bottom of the trough, and atintervals, can be recovered through the provision of apertured stopperseats in the bottom of the trough, that carry rubber stoppers llprovided with depending handles. 7 8'. The operator is thus permitted topush the stopper upwardly, so that the minerals in the trough can bewashed out through the openings, and then can pull the stoppersdownwardly into the seats to close the penings.

. An overflow pipe l9 leads from the trough l4 to the wash tank a, sothat water can move to the wash tank 8 when it reaches a predetermined.level in the trough.

A point to be noted is that: any minerals thatmay wash out with thewater through the overflow pipe Iii would drop to the bottom. of. thewash tank 8, due to their relatively high degree of. specific gravity,to. be acted upon again by the conveyor and again passed through themachine,

I have found that the machine operates with great efficiency upon theore, so as to recover an unusually high percentage of minerals from thesand and other waste. The capacity of the machine is high, and itsdistinguishing characteristic is the separation of mineral particlesfrom the mass of ore by concentration. Thus, the mineral particles, thatare of greater specific gravity than the sand, tend, when separated fromthe rest of the mass, by the heavy agitating and washing action, togravitate whenever permitted to a lower level than the sand. This is ofvalue, for example, in the trough 14, when at the completion of theoperation, the minerals are washed out of the pores of the belt intowhich they were driven by the upper spray jets, and are thus permittedto gravitate to the bottom of the trough, while the water and any sandwhich may still remain will proceed through the overflow pipe 19.

I claim:

In a, fine ore recovering machine, the combination which comprises asupporting frame, a pair of spaced horizontally disposed rollersjournaled in a horizontal plane on the upper end of the frame, a thirdroller positioned between the two former rollers and j ournaled in thelower part of the frame with the axis thereof in a plane parallel to thehorizontal plane in which the upper rollers are positioned, an endlesscanvas belt trained over the said rollers substantially describing atriangle, an idler roller also positioned between the rollers in theupper horizontal plane, a pair of arms pivotally mounted on one end ofthe frame and extended over the belt in the ends of which the said idlerroller is mounted, the axis of the roller being parallel to the axis ofthe spaced horizontally disposed rollers, springs resiliently connectingthe said arms to upwardly extended extensions of the frame whereby thesaid idler roller is urged upwardly, the length of the said idler rollerbeing less than the width 7 of the belt whereby with the rollerpositioned with one end coinciding with one edge of the belt theopposite end is spaced inwardly from the opposite edge of the belt, apair of idler rollers positioned to overlap the said opposite edge ofthe belt, a, bracket for mounting the said pair of idler rollers wherebythe rollers hold the edge of the belt in an upwardly extended position,whereby fluid in the section of the belt bowed downwardly by the idlerroller flows toward the edge of the belt coinciding with the end of theidler roller, a drip pan positioned to receive fluid from the downwardlybowed section of the belt, a feed trough extended over one end of thebelt, a wash tank positioned at one end of the frame, a bucket elevatorfor feeding material from the wash tank to the feed trough of theconveyor, a transversely disposed tube with spaced laterally disposedspray nozzles extended downwardly therefrom mounted above the uppercourse of the belt and positioned between the said idler roller and theupper horizontally disposed roller at the end of the belt opposite tothat on which the feed trough is positioned, a second transverselydisposed tube having a, continuous slit in the lower side with anarcuate ba-fiie carried by the tube and extended below the slit fordirecting fluid discharged through the slit against the surface of thebelt, a concentrating trough positioned below the lower roller of thebelt, and extended upwardly whereby the belt passing around the lowerroller travels 8 through fluid in the trough, a, third transverselydisposed tube with spray openings therein mounted on the side of theconcentrating trough on which the belt leaves the trough for washingrecovered ores from the belt, means supplying washing fluid to thetransversely disposed tubes, and means driving the belt and conveyor.

LOUIS D. DREW.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 142,419 Tolle Sept. 2, 1873325,429 McKim Sept, 1, 1885 446,055 Castelnau Feb. 10, 1891 446,963Castelnau Feb. 24, 1891 859,483 Callow et al. July 9, 1907 893,368Quigiey July 14, 1908 964,083 Blake July 12, 1910 1,249,078 Hardie Dec.4, 1917 2,314,542 Kern Mar. 23, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date20,843 Australia Jan. 16, 1936 1935 101,262 Australia, June 17, 1937

